To Move On With My Life
by Auditory Eden
Summary: Yachiru's all grown up, but he'll never see how strong she truly is. "Once you said you'd do anything to protect me, even hold me back..."


Author: Auditory Eden

Rating: K+ for ANGST

Warnings: If you don't like angst, stop here. Also stop here is you are a fan of Yachiru/Zaraki romance (gag), unless you are willing to be sad.

Notes: um..nothing much. OOOOHHH right. Disclaimer, I don't own you don't sue.

To Move on With My Life

Yachiru was strong, now. Everyone could tell but the one person who mattered most to the not-so-little pinkette.

Zaraki Kenpachi.

He stubbornly refused to acknowledge that she was growing older, stronger, more beautiful, more desirable, at least to other males. The totally asexual Zaraki either couldn't or didn't want to tell when suddenly a hell of a lot more young recruits were swarming around her; and not just to get in good with the taicho of squad eleven, either.

She was a strong, confident young woman, with a mind of her own and the profane vernacular to prove it. And as a fuku-taicho, even to the frighteningly powerful Zaraki Kenpachi, she just wasn't improving. She needed more scope for her talents, as it were.

But as well as being a better fighter, she was also less naïve (though all traces of childish ignorance had yet to be washed from her brain). She knew that if she were to fill out the standard application and hand it into her taicho, he would promptly "lose" it, in a futile attempt to protect her from that which was knocking at the door of fate like maniacal girl scouts trying to fulfill quota.

So she bypassed that entirely, and handed her application straight to Genryuusei. She was not surprised when the taicho exams where easy for her, and was not shocked when she was assigned to be the taicho of Squad Three. Her only request was that her name not be mentioned, or even hinted at, until the captains meeting when she would be officially established as a taicho herself, and that Zaraki Kenpachi would not be informed of her promotion. By the end of the week, she had received her own white haori, with "three" written out on the back in black.

xXx

"Yachiru, I've got a taicho meeting this morning. Can ya head over to the squad an' make sure they're doin' their work?" The monster man called out to the seventeen-year-old-looking girl in the next room. She'd shut herself up in there an hour ago, and he was starting to worry.

"Sure, Ken-chan! I'll keep Cue-ball and Yumi in line!" Her voice was muffled, and, behind her door, she was cursing fluently. She jerked the white haori over her black shinigami's kimono, and tucked her zanpakto, complete with sheath, into her obi. She watched until Zaraki was down the street and around the corner before taking off over rooftops with a frenzied shunpo. She had to make it to the meeting on time; as the new taicho in question, it would be unbelievably disrespectful to not show up on time.

She made it. Kenpachi was still some distance away, and thus, it was safe. Kneeling alone in a room where she would wait until called, she heard the taichos, no, the _other_ taichos, as she now was amongst their rank, filter into the room. Zaraki, Hitsugaya, Ukitake, and others.

All too soon, she could sense that everyone was in the room. Her stomach clenched. Yama-ji's voice was not quite as gravely and rough through the door, but she still heard him say, "The new taicho of third squad. You may enter, now."

And she did.

"I believe you all know Yachiru." The Taicho General was smiling heavily. _Everyone_ knew Yachiru; her childish exploits were the stuff of legend.

"I'll do my best, everyone!" She bowed, as solemn as she could possibly be. Then she looked up.

The expressions on the surrounding faces ranged from emotionless non-caring (Mayuri and Hitsugaya), to blatant but resigned annoyance (Byakuya), to all out jaw-dropped shock (Zaraki). It became immediately evident to all that Yachiru, for whatever reason, had not seen fit to tell her former leader that she was being promoted.

"What're you playin' at, ya damn brat?" he question cooley, once he had regained his composure.

She smiled sweetly, "I took the exam, Ken-chan, and I made it!" He shook his head, as if trying to shake off bees.

"I gathered that part, brat. What the hell," and he lowered his voice now, "do you think you're doing!" She regarded him coldly.

"What am I doing?" she parroted. "Why, Ken-chan, I thought you might have realized by now, I'm growing up! Actually," she whispered conspiratorially, "I have been for a while. By human standards, I'm seventeen. Not seven."

She walked past him, bowing politely to the other captains.

"Welcome, Yachiru," greeted Unohana. Hitsugaya, now almost twenty, nodded, and asked, "Is this all, Yama-ji? I have a feeling Matsumoto is off getting drunk again."

With a word from Yamamoto, they began to disperse. Each had duties, and more important things to do than support Yachiru. She herself was needed at the Squad Three building. She was following Hitsugaya from the room when Zaraki tapped her on the shoulder and drew her aside.

"What? I have a squad to attend to," she injected enough venom into her voice to kill a horse, but Zaraki wasn't the most feared shinigami ever for nothing. It took more than a cold word from his surrogate daughter to turn him away.

"Why didn't ya tell me?" he demanded softly.

Her face softened. "You would have tried to stop me," she said simply. "To _protect_ me, you said once you would do anything. Even if it meant restraining me, holding me back." She turned quickly and walked from the room before he could get another word in edgewise.

He watched her back as she left the room, and her name rose unbidden to his lips, a pained whisper, "Yachiru..."

xXx

Parting Comments: So yeah. This is just an angsty coming-of-age type of thing, with no real pairing. THIS IS NOT KENPACHI/YACHIRU. THAT IS GROSS.

Love it? Hate it? Tell me.

Oh, and watch out for a Yachiru/Renji (yes, romance) fic called "The Light Through Yonder Window Breaks". Actually, it's up now, so, shameless self-advertising is go. PLEASE READ IT!!!!

Hugs and Kisses

Eden


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